Golfer&#39;s helper



Feb. 4, 1964 w. DOBLE 3,120,388

GOLFERS HELPER Filed June 15, 1961 FIG.|. FIG.2.

WARREN DOBLE INVENTOR. KENDRICK, SCHRAMM 8| STOL Z Y ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,120,388 GOLFERS HELPER Warren Doble, North Holiywood, Califl, assignor to Divot Doctor Company, North Hollywood, Calif., a California partnership Filed June 15, 1961, Ser. No. 117,368 3 (Ilaims. (Cl. 273-32) This invention relates to golfing equipment, and more particularly, to a combination tgolf green repair tool and marker.

In certain cases, golfers themselves must be reminded to repair damage they have caused to golf greens. This is especially true of small amounts of damage because a continuous survey of all the greens, even in a nine hole course, would be entirely impractical.

One example of such a small damage is the indentation made in a green by chipping. That is, a ball often makes a substantial indentation in a green when it is lofted or driven toward a green and falls onto it from a relatively high altitude.

In the past golfers have used tees to repair such indentations. However, such are inadequate for this purpose.

The present invention overcomes the above-described and other disadvantages of the prior art by providing a substantially fiat strip slotted at one end to provide a fork. This tool may the employed to pry up green indentations resulting from chipping with considerably greater facility than golf tees due to its inherent stability. In addition, in accordance with a feature of the invention a magnet may be provided on the other end of the tool to hold a disc-shaped marker made of a ferromagnetic material. The marker may be employed to flag the location of a ball after the ball is removed from the surface of a green. For example, it is often necessary to remove a ball from a green when it rests in a position between that of another players ball and that of the cup. The magnet thus connects two articles both of which may be useful to a golfer contemporaneously on a green.

Note will be taken that an outstanding feature of the present invention resides in the fact that a golfer is reminded that green indentations due to chipping or the like should be repaired because each time he uses his manker he must hold his repair tool in his hand. In other words, the use of the device of the present invention, in ordinary play, connects the operation of marking the location of a ball on a green to that of repairing the green.

Another advantage of the invention resides in the fact that the marker may be easily found by a golfer even though he keeps it loose in his pocket with several other articles including minted currency. This is due to the fact that the tool on which the marker is located is forked and is therefore easy to recognize by the touch.

Note will also be taken that when a golfer places the marker and tool in one of the pockets in his attire, his body movements in the play from one green to the next will cause the marker and tool to move around in his pocket and will cause the marker to become attached to the tool again.

In accordance with another feature of the invention, the tool and the marker may be provided with mating transverse structural variations to prevent the marker from sliding off of the tool magnet. For example, the magnet may be annular in shape and press fit in the tool strip. The marker may be indented at its center to fit in the hole at the center of the magnet. This marker indentation likewise provides an additional useful function. In particular, it prevents the marker from becoming stuck irretrievably between coins in the 'golfers pocket. Hence, when the golfer separately places the tool and marker in his pocket at different times, the marker indentation aids in its own migration in finding the tool and becoming fixed in position with the magnet carried thereby.

The above-described and other advantages of the present invention may be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing, which is to be regarded as merely illustrative:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of the device of the present invention; and

FIG. 2 is a sectional View of the device taken on the line 22 shown in FIG. 1.

:In the drawing a tool for repairing grass indentations in golf course greens is shown comprising a substantially flat strip of aluminum 10 having a slot at 11 cut in one end thereof to provide a fork including prongs 12.

A disc-shaped marker removable from the tool is indicated at 13. The manker 13 is held in position on one face of the tool by a small hollow cylindrically-shaped magnet 14 that is press fit into a small cylindrical bore 15 in the end of the tool opposite the end in which slot 11 is provided.

As stated previously, magnet 14 is hollow. It is provided with a cylindrical bore 16 into which an indentation of marker 13 projects. The marker 13 is thus maintained in a secure transverse position on the face of strip 10 as shown in FIG. 1 not only by the force of attraction of the magnet 14 on the marker and its frictional engagement therewith, but also by the projection of the marker indentation at 17 into the bore 16 of magnet 14.

Note will be taken that the strip 10 is preferably provided with a width to fit the thumb. The same is true of the distance between the upper end of slot 11 and the upper end of the strip 1% as is shown in FIG. 1.

Note will also be taken that due to the construction and orientation of magnet 14 and marker 13, that the magnet 14 is axially polarized.

The marker 13 is less likely to slide off of the strip 10 if the right end of magnet 14, as viewed in FIG. 2, is flush with the right hand surface of strip 10. The same is true when marker 13 is provided with a diameter sufficiently small and is located in a position such that its outer edge lies everywhere in contact with the right hand surface of the strip 10 as indicated in FIG. 2. The fact that marker 13 has a periphery which is Within the boundary of the portion of strip 10 above the upper end of slot 11 is also clearly indicated in FIG. 1.

An indentation in golf course greens may be repaired with the tool of the present invention simply by inserting prongs 12 into the turf at an angle of about 45 degrees relative to ground level and prying the indentation up by the application of force on the tool with the thumb.

In the play of a game of golf the marker 13 may be removed from the tool of the present invention and employed to flag the location of the ball.

Note will be taken that the strip 10 may be made of plastic or many suitable materials other than aluminum. Magnet 14 and marker 13 may be of any suitable ferromagnetic material.

From the foregoing, it will be appreciated that the tool of the present invention may be employed to pry up golf green indentations resulting from chipping while obviating the inherent instability of golf tees. In addition, the marker and its use reminds a golfer that he should use his tool at least to repair any damage to a green resulting from his use of it. The odd shape of the tool also makes it an easy matter for the golfer to find both tool and attached marker in his pocket.

In addition to the foregoing, it will also be noted that the tool and the marker may be placed in a golfers pocket at different times during the play and that the golfers body movements in the play from one green to the next will cause the marker and tool to move around in his pocket and will cause the marker again to become attached to the tool.

Indentation 17 in marker 13 provides means by which the marker 13 is made secure to strip 1%). Still further, it prevents the marker from becoming struck irretrievably between coins in a golfers pocket.

Although only one specific embodiment of the invenhas been disclosed herein, it is to be understood that many changes and modifications thereof may be made by those skilled in the art. Hence the invention is not to be limited to the embodiment specifically illustrated and described, the true scope of the invention being defined only in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A golfers aid comprising: a substantially fiat strip of a width to fit the thumb, said strip having a slot in one end thereof, said slot also being located in a position spaced from the other end thereof a distance to fit the thumb, said other end of said strip having a hole therethrough; an annular axially polarized magnet fixed in said strip hole, said magnet having a hole therethrough; and a ferromagnetic marker held in a position contiguous to said magnet by its force of attraction, said marker having an indentation extending into said magnet hole to prevent sliding movement of said marker away from said magnet.

2. A golfers aid comprising: a substantially fiat strip of a width to fit the thumb, said strip having a slot in one end thereof, said slot also being located in a position spaced from the other end thereof a distance 4 to fit the thumb, said other end of said strip having a hole therethrough; an annular axially polarized magnet fixed in said magnet having a hole therethrough, one end of said magnet lying flush with one side of said strip; and a ferromagnetic marker held in a position contiguous to said magnet by its force of attraction, said marker having an indentation extending into said magnet hole to prevent sliding movement of said marker away from said magnet, said marker having a diameter sutficiently small to permit its outer edge to lie in contact with said side of said strip.

3. A golfers aid comprising: a substantially flat rectangular strip of a uniform width sufiiciently large to fit the thumb, said strip having a slot in one end thereof spaced from the other end thereof a distance to fit the thumb, said strip having a hole thercthrough between said slot and said other end thereof; a permanent magnet fixed relative to said strip in a position in said hole; and a disc shaped marker of a diameter smaller than the width of said strip and smaller than the distance between the end of said slot and said other end of said strip, said magnet having a cavity therein, said marker having a projection thereon to fit in said cavity, said magnet having a fiat surface lying flush with one side of said strip, said disc also having a flat surface, except for said projections, lying everywhere in contact with said magnet and strip flush surfaces.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,385,859 Jacobson Oct. 2, 1945 2,979,335 Pruitt Apr. 11, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 597,631 France Sept. 5, 1925 

1. A GOLFER''S AID COMPRISING: A SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT STRIP OF A WIDTH TO FIT THE THUMB, SAID STRIP HAVING A SLOT IN ONE END THEREOF, SAID SLOT ALSO BEING LOCATED IN A POSITION SPACED FROM THE OTHER END THEREOF A DISTANCE TO FIT THE THUMB, SAID OTHER END OF SAID STRIP HAVING A HOLE THERETHROUGH; AN ANNULAR AXIALLY POLARIZED MAGNET FIXED IN SAID STRIP HOLE, SAID MAGNET HAVING A HOLE THERETHROUGH; AND A FERROMAGNETIC MARKER HELD IN A POSITION CONTIGUOUS TO SAID MAGNET BY ITS FORCE OF ATTRACTION, SAID MARKER HAVING AN INDENTATION EXTENDING INTO SAID MAGNET HOLE TO PREVENT SLIDING MOVEMENT OF SAID MARKER AWAY FROM SAID MAGNET. 